According to Page Six, Billy Joel ended up in the hospital yesterday- no, not another drunken car accident; this time he cut his finger opening a can of cannellini beans, and was taken to the ER by his 22-year-old fiancé, Kate Lee.
Yes, you heard that right, Billy Joel has a 22-year-old fiancé. Joel is himself 55; let’s put this in a little bit of perspective:
-Joel released NINE ALBUMS- “Cold Spring Harbor,” “Piano Man,” “Streetlife Serenade,” “Turnstiles,” “The Stranger,” “52nd Street,” “Glass Houses,” “Songs in the Attic,” and “The Nylon Curtain,” and won five Grammy awards, before Lee was born.
-Joel “was born in ’49, a Cold War kid in McCarthy time.” Kate was born in 1982, 25 years after Joseph McCarthy’s death- and when the Cold War ended, she was 7.
-Lee was also 7 for “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” but is of course too young to remember any of the historical references in the song, at least prior to “rock ‘n’ roller cola wars.” Perhaps the song was played by Lee’s teacher that year, to give an introduction of late-20th century history to her second grade class.
-Joel wrote a futuristic song in the ‘70s called “Miami 2017 (I’ve Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway).” In 2017, Lee will be 35, or 20 years younger than Joel is now.
-Joel’s most recent studio album, “River Dreams,” came out in 1993, when his blushing bride was 11.
-Lee is only three years older than Joel’s daughter Alexa Ray (b. 1985), though “The Downeaster Kate” doesn’t quite have the same panache.
-And when Joel entered rehab after his car accident two years ago, Lee wasn’t yet old enough to drink.
But if you ask me, Billy could keep hooking up with 22-year-olds for the rest of his life- he’ll never match Christie Brinkley in her prime.
Posted by Stephen Silver at April 2, 2004 04:41 PM